Europe is witnessing a string of Hollywood-style museum heists, with the latest theft taking place at Austria’s Museum of Applied Arts (MAK) on Friday. Two thieves entered the museum after buying tickets and walked away with a 200-carat platinum and diamond necklace.&nbsp;The unusual part of the raid was how openly it was carried out. According to police, the two men entered the museum without wearing masks and were clearly visible on surveillance cameras. They did not use any fancy entrance or attempt to conceal their identities.&nbsp;Police said they "smashed a glass display case" with a hammer before "fleeing with the jewellery in an unknown direction".&nbsp;As per Austrian media reports, the Van Cleef and Arpels necklace contains 673 precious stones and was worth several million dollars. The theft is the latest in a series of high-profile museum heists across Europe.&nbsp;The necklace was part of an exhibition dedicated to French designers Van Cleef and Arpels. Around 500 pieces had been on display since June. The exhibition was scheduled to run until September 27 but has now been closed following the theft.&nbsp;Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/nepal-floods-pm-ministers-pledge-a-month-s-salary-to-relief-fund-india-calls-relief-efforts-highest-priority-1787913619280">Nepal floods: PM, ministers pledge a month’s salary to relief fund; India calls relief efforts ‘highest priority’</a><h3>A necklace with royal history</h3>The necklace was designed for the former Egyptian royal family. Queen Nazli wore it in 1939 for the wedding of her daughter Faiza to Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who later became the Shah of Iran.&nbsp;Van Cleef and Arpels described the stolen piece on its website as a "triumph of white jewellery". The French company did not immediately comment on the theft.&nbsp;The latest raid comes as European museums face a series of spectacular thefts. In October, thieves broke into the Louvre in Paris in broad daylight and escaped in less than eight minutes with jewellery worth $102 million.&nbsp;On Thursday, thieves in Spain staged another rapid raid at the historic Treasure of Villena museum, stealing most of its collection in a heist that lasted just four minutes. The stolen gold alone is worth around 1.7 million euros, or $2 million.&nbsp;The collection also includes several other historical artefacts whose value cannot be determined.The raid targeted more than 50 objects, mainly made of gold, at the museum in the Spanish town of Villena.&nbsp;A town council spokesman said, "The alarm at the Villena Museum went off around 5:20 am (0320 GMT)." He added that the thieves had left the building by 5:24 am.

Two thieves paid to enter Austria’s Museum of Applied Arts before smashing a display case and fleeing with a 200-carat platinum and diamond necklace worth several million dollars.

Europe is witnessing a string of Hollywood-style museum heists, with the latest theft taking place at Austria’s Museum of Applied Arts (MAK) on Friday. Two thieves entered the museum after buying tickets and walked away with a 200-carat platinum and diamond necklace. The unusual part of the raid was how openly it was carried out. According to police, the two men entered the museum without wearing masks and were clearly visible on surveillance cameras. They did not use any fancy entrance or attempt to conceal their identities. Police said they "smashed a glass display case" with a hammer before "fleeing with the jewellery in an unknown direction". As per Austrian media reports, the Van Cleef and Arpels necklace contains 673 precious stones and was worth several million dollars. The theft is the latest in a series of high-profile museum heists across Europe. The necklace was part of an exhibition dedicated to French designers Van Cleef and Arpels. Around 500 pieces had been on display since June. The exhibition was scheduled to run until September 27 but has now been closed following the theft. Also Read: Nepal floods: PM, ministers pledge a month’s salary to relief fund; India calls relief efforts ‘highest priority’ A necklace with royal history The necklace was designed for the former Egyptian royal family. Queen Nazli wore it in 1939 for the wedding of her daughter Faiza to Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who later became the Shah of Iran. Van Cleef and Arpels described the stolen piece on its website as a "triumph of white jewellery". The French company did not immediately comment on the theft. The latest raid comes as European museums face a series of spectacular thefts. In October, thieves broke into the Louvre in Paris in broad daylight and escaped in less than eight minutes with jewellery worth $102 million. On Thursday, thieves in Spain staged another rapid raid at the historic Treasure of Villena museum, stealing most of its collection in a heist that lasted just four minutes. The stolen gold alone is worth around 1.7 million euros, or $2 million. The collection also includes several other historical artefacts whose value cannot be determined. The raid targeted more than 50 objects, mainly made of gold, at the museum in the Spanish town of Villena. A town council spokesman said, "The alarm at the Villena Museum went off around 5:20 am (0320 GMT)." He added that the thieves had left the building by 5:24 am.

Two thieves paid to enter Austria’s Museum of Applied Arts before smashing a display case and fleeing with a 200-carat platinum and diamond necklace worth several million dollars.

They bought tickets to steal: Thieves walk into Austria museum and flee with 200-carat platinum diamond necklace

Thieves staged a superfast raid at the historic Treasure of Villena museum in Spain, stealing most of its collection in a high-profile heist that lasted just four minutes. The stolen gold alone is worth around 1.7 million euros ($2 million). The collection also includes several other historical artefacts whose value cannot be determined.&nbsp;The raid targeted more than 50 objects, mainly made of gold, at the museum in the Spanish town of Villena.&nbsp;"The alarm at the Villena Museum went off around 5:20 am (0320 GMT)," a town council spokesman said. He added that the thieves had left the building by 5:24 am.&nbsp;"They've taken most of the treasure," Villena mayor Fulgencio Cerdan told journalists, as reported by AFP.&nbsp;"We are absolutely devastated; I'm even trembling. The truth is that for those of us from Villena, this destroys us. It's part of our heritage, of our wealth," Cerdan said.<h3>What was inside the treasure?</h3>The Treasure of Villena collection contains 29 bracelets, 11 bowls, three bottles and several other pieces. The items are displayed at a small museum in the town in Alicante province.&nbsp;Most of the artefacts are made of gold, while others contain silver, iron and amber. They date back to around 1,000 BC.&nbsp;Archaeologist Jose Maria Soler discovered the treasure in 1963. He found it inside a vessel buried in a dried-out riverbed in Villena.&nbsp;Also Read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/absolute-pain-sadhguru-breaks-down-as-80-pilgrims-remain-missing-after-nepal-floods-1787830539827">‘We are in absolute pain’: Sadhguru breaks down as 80 pilgrims remain missing after Nepal floods | Video</a><h3>How the thieves entered the museum</h3>The thieves arrived in several vehicles and apparently entered the museum "through a window", according to Manuel Pineda, the Spanish government's deputy representative in Alicante.&nbsp;"All security systems were activated," the Villena spokesman said, insisting there had been "no failure" by the museum.&nbsp;An alarm also went off at the city's sports centre shortly before the robbery. Authorities were investigating whether the alarm was deliberately triggered as a diversion, the spokesperson said.<h3>Europe sees more museum raids</h3>The Villena heist comes after a series of high-profile thefts from cultural institutions across Europe.Last October, thieves broke into the Louvre museum in Paris in broad daylight. They escaped in less than eight minutes with jewellery worth $102 million.&nbsp;Four works "of extraordinary value" by Renaissance artist Antonello da Messina were also stolen from a museum in Sicily, Italy's culture ministry said on Sunday.&nbsp;Two days earlier, Italian police said they had recovered paintings by Renoir, Cezanne and Matisse worth more than $10.4 million. Thieves had stolen the paintings from the Magnani-Rocca Foundation museum near Parma.

Thieves carried out a superfast four-minute raid at Spain’s Treasure of Villena museum, stealing most of the ancient collection, including gold worth around 1.7 million euros ($2 million).

Thieves staged a superfast raid at the historic Treasure of Villena museum in Spain, stealing most of its collection in a high-profile heist that lasted just four minutes. The stolen gold alone is worth around 1.7 million euros ($2 million). The collection also includes several other historical artefacts whose value cannot be determined. The raid targeted more than 50 objects, mainly made of gold, at the museum in the Spanish town of Villena. "The alarm at the Villena Museum went off around 5:20 am (0320 GMT)," a town council spokesman said. He added that the thieves had left the building by 5:24 am. "They've taken most of the treasure," Villena mayor Fulgencio Cerdan told journalists, as reported by AFP. "We are absolutely devastated; I'm even trembling. The truth is that for those of us from Villena, this destroys us. It's part of our heritage, of our wealth," Cerdan said. What was inside the treasure? The Treasure of Villena collection contains 29 bracelets, 11 bowls, three bottles and several other pieces. The items are displayed at a small museum in the town in Alicante province. Most of the artefacts are made of gold, while others contain silver, iron and amber. They date back to around 1,000 BC. Archaeologist Jose Maria Soler discovered the treasure in 1963. He found it inside a vessel buried in a dried-out riverbed in Villena. Also Read: ‘We are in absolute pain’: Sadhguru breaks down as 80 pilgrims remain missing after Nepal floods | Video How the thieves entered the museum The thieves arrived in several vehicles and apparently entered the museum "through a window", according to Manuel Pineda, the Spanish government's deputy representative in Alicante. "All security systems were activated," the Villena spokesman said, insisting there had been "no failure" by the museum. An alarm also went off at the city's sports centre shortly before the robbery. Authorities were investigating whether the alarm was deliberately triggered as a diversion, the spokesperson said. Europe sees more museum raids The Villena heist comes after a series of high-profile thefts from cultural institutions across Europe. Last October, thieves broke into the Louvre museum in Paris in broad daylight. They escaped in less than eight minutes with jewellery worth $102 million. Four works "of extraordinary value" by Renaissance artist Antonello da Messina were also stolen from a museum in Sicily, Italy's culture ministry said on Sunday. Two days earlier, Italian police said they had recovered paintings by Renoir, Cezanne and Matisse worth more than $10.4 million. Thieves had stolen the paintings from the Magnani-Rocca Foundation museum near Parma.

Thieves carried out a superfast four-minute raid at Spain’s Treasure of Villena museum, stealing most of the ancient collection, including gold worth around 1.7 million euros ($2 million).

4 minutes, priceless treasure gone: Thieves pull off superfast Bronze Age gold heist in Spain

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They bought tickets to steal: Thieves walk into Austria museum and flee with 200-carat platinum diamond necklace

4 mins, treasure gone: Thieves pull off superfast Bronze Age gold heist in Spain